The known splitter switching unit has a sensors, offset towards the side in regard to the selector lever switching path, whereby especially the printed circuit board is positioned in parallel with the level of the switching path. This electronic selector lever module works very reliable and its size is suitable for most of the applications. However, there exists applications in which the available space is not going to be sufficient.
Therefore, the invention also refers to an electronic selector lever module as described in the patent publication DE 10 2006 021 078 B. The publication of an electronic selector lever module solves a task, by maintaining the electric reliability, combined with the limited mounting space, making the module suitable for the different vehicles. In this configuration, the printed circuit board is not placed anymore sideways and in parallel to the slide path, but positioned in front of the slide path in a transverse alignment, so that the motion in the slide path D, N, R, P of the gear selector lever is facing the sensor side of the PCB. This alignment requires a re-constriction of the mechanism, which is linking the gear selector lever with the sensor actuators in the area of the printed circuit board.
At the input side and the output side, meaning at the time of motions, which are being entered through the gear selector lever, and providing the output through the PCB, a general principle remains in accordance with the invention, which has been proven through the modules in DE 103 19 720 B3 and DE 10 2006 021 078 B. The usual swiveling of the gear selector lever, within the main shifting path P, R, N, D, is converted to a rotation motion for an angle sensor.
A motion of the gear selector lever, transversal to the direction of the shifting path, can be, depending on the shifting boundary, a tilting motion for a manual gear selection, or can be interpreted, having a different shifting boundary, as a changing of a path into a second shifting path. In DE 10 2006 021 078 B, the transversal motion was linearly transformed for an additional sensor, which was also positioned as a way point sensor on the printed circuit board. At this point, an improvement of the mechanism, in accordance with DE 10 2006 021 078 B, became necessary. With the existing method, a problem arose in recognizing breakages. The motion of the gear selector lever is transferred by a bracket with a ball extension to the invented mechanism. If the bracket is going to break, either through excessive stress or misuse, the defect could not be detected until now.
A problem developed also in guiding the provided damping part, in addition to the present angle sensor's damping part. During the conversion of the gear selector lever's motion, transversal to the direction of the shifting path, it could happen that too much pressure or a misuse would cause an inaccurate analysis by the sensors.
Last but not least, also tolerances which are present within the moving track of the bracket with the ball extension, in accordance with DE 10 2006 021 078 B, need to be compensated and shall not cause any inaccuracies in the analysis.
Finally, the proper guidance of the rotor, relative to the angle sensor, needs to be present, using as few parts as possible, and having small distance tolerances.